Arnold Beckman
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Arnold Orville Beckman was an American chemist, inventor, investor, and philanthropist. While a professor at California Institute of Technology, he founded Beckman Instruments based on his 1934 invent
Vacuum Tube for Beckman p H Meter 2006.519
Arnold Beckman, ca. 1921
Joel Dorman Steele's 1868 book Fourteen Weeks in Chemistry (p.27 of the 1873 edition shown) inspired Beckman at the age of 9.
Beckman Helipot potentiometer SA1400A
PH
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In chemistry, pH is a logarithmic scale used to specify the acidity or basicity of aqueous solutions. Acidic solutions are measured to have lower pH values than basic or alkaline solutions. While the
Arnold Beckman
…Lemons that were not saleable as produce were made into pectin or citric acid, with sulfur dioxide used as a preservative. Sunkist needed to know the acidity of the product at any given time, and the colorimetric methods then in use, such as readings from litmus paper, did not work well because sulfur dioxide interfered…
Test tubes containing solutions of pH 1 to 10 colored with an indicator
Lemon juice tastes sour because it contains 5% to 6% citric acid and has a pH of 2.2 (high acidity).